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Naperville Community Gardeners
Spring Plant Sale -
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As a previous “mini”-member of your organization, I learned the value, serenity, and purposefulness of gardening. A garden is not only a place to cultivate aesthetic or consumable plant life, but a fertile ground for learning and accomplishment. I moved from Naperville to New Orleans, Louisiana a little over two years ago with the Teach for America organization: A corps of recent college graduates trained and constantly developing to close the achievement gap of the economically disadvantaged schools in America. The learning curve in my first two years was overwhelming at times, but the drive to teach, inspire, and change the current status of education helped me persevere. Following Hurricane Katrina, I moved with a corps of teachers to Houston, Texas and created an evacuee school: NOW College Prep. NOW was a blend of Teach for America teachers and KIPP (Knowledge is Power Program) leaders. We worked relentlessly to bring our students to grade level and beyond, while nurturing and healing the broken spirits following the storm.
Due to the success and academic excellence of NOW College Prep, our mission was granted a charter at one of the oldest elementary schools in New Orleans: McDonogh #15. This “little red schoolhouse,” as natives of the French Quarter call it, was once the location of the largest Opera house in the United States—created and supported by the aristocracy of Paris. It was also the elementary school of Lee Harvey Oswald. Our goals, however, are not to breed assassins, but a new generation of self-determined and virtuous college bound individuals.
McDonogh #15 was also locally famous for its gardens. There were pictures of the school, recently removed by FEMA due to black mold, of students in the 1920s, 30s, and 40s plowing, cultivating, and sharing snacks of vegetables and fruits from the garden. After the hurricane, the gardens have been damaged. Weeds and fungus now grow up through the ripped liner at the bottom of the gardens. While the staff at McDonogh #15 has worked vehemently to repair, repaint, and restore the interior of our public school, the gardens outside lay barren.
I am writing in request of support from my community. When looking at the old pictures of McDonogh #15, I thought of the garden plots that grow copious plants during the summer and fall in Naperville. A garden at McDonogh #15 would not only provide healthy eating habits, but an outside school-room where students could learn about the life-cycle of a plant, the power of a seed, types of soil, the problem with weeds (and ultimately competition for resources), the basic needs of flora, and the enjoyment of creating something with their hands. Students would make a connection between the food they eat and where it comes from—creating a sense of communal responsibility for the environment. This garden and its eco-literacy curriculum would serve students in grades Pre-K through 8th. If you agree to sponsor the gardens at McDonogh #15, I guarantee pictures and letters from our students whom I know would greatly benefit from this experience. If the garden club can only support a partial donation, this is fine, as we will then spur a garden drive in the French Quarter community, New Orleans, and other cities where teachers and staff have connections. I have included some pictures of the gardens at McDonogh #15 as well as a few student photographs I snapped during our first week of school. I have attached a list of resources we would need to get our gardens growing. Thank
you very much for your time, Requested monies for supplies: **Prices taken from KidsGardening.com
Cultivation tools (hand-tools, wheelbarrow, gloves, plant markers, etc) --
$250.00 Total Estimated Cost for garden creation and upkeep $795.00
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